This isn't a job for untrained technicians. Artifacts like pullouts (where particles are physically pulled out during polishing) or smearing (where material is smeared across the surface) can easily be mistaken for porosity if the operator isn't experienced.
The standard doesn't make value judgments about how much porosity is acceptable—that's your job based on your application and industry requirements. But it does give you the tools to measure porosity accurately, eliminate guesswork, and communicate results in a way that's understood throughout the industry.
Excessive voids reduce the cohesive strength of the coating, leading to premature delamination or spalling.
Use vacuum impregnation with a low-viscosity epoxy to fill open pores, which helps prevent edge rounding and pull-outs.
To achieve reliable data that complies with international manufacturing audits, labs must standardize their measurement workflows. astm e2109-01 pdf
I can provide targeted advice on optimizing your thresholding and sample preparation workflows for those exact parameters. Share public link
Understanding ASTM E2109-01: Standard Test Methods for Determining Area Percentage Porosity in Thermal Sprayed Coatings
The measurement of phase volume fractions and porosity is a foundational requirement in materials science, metallurgy, and quality assurance. When evaluating thermal spray coatings, advanced ceramics, or specialized alloys, manual point-counting methods can be slow and prone to human error.
Voids act as insulators, impacting thermal conductivity. 3. Specimen Preparation This isn't a job for untrained technicians
By formalizing the evaluation process, this standard ensures that different laboratories can test the same material and achieve reproducible, objective, and accurate data. Why Industries Seek the ASTM E2109-01 PDF
The specific thermal spray method used (e.g., Plasma, HVOF).
Operators count the grid intersections that fall directly inside a pore.
: This method is ideal for quick, low-cost laboratory checks that do not require specialized computer software. But it does give you the tools to
Are you setting up an , or looking for a manual process?
Between the lines of logs and the procedural certainty of the PDF, a human story emerged: a technician with debts who had taken a sliver of high-value material to sell to a broker; a lab manager who turned an absent-mindedness into plausible deniability; a system that had been designed for reproducibility but not for suspicion. The E2109 procedure had been followed for the outward steps, but it had not accounted for the quiet, small opportunities that let someone fiddle with the truth.
ASTM E2109 quantifies porosity strictly based on the light reflectivity from a metallographically polished cross-section. It describes two distinct approaches: